The N.C. Division of Coastal Management and the New Hanover County Sheriff’s Office are urging the public to act responsibly during the upcoming July Fourth holiday at the Masonboro Island Reserve, a research reserve and dedicated state nature preserve.

The N.C. Division of Coastal Management has found that a proposed seismic survey related to oil and gas exploration in the Atlantic Ocean off the North Carolina coast is inconsistent with state coastal management policies.

Local governments along with coastal residents and business owners will soon sit down with climate scientists, state and federal agencies and other experts to discuss one of the most pressing issues facing our coast: how to make their communities and businesses more resilient to climate impacts and intense weather events.

The North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality’s Secretary Michael Regan and more than a dozen coastal leaders met last week to discuss the dangers of seismic testing and offshore drilling. Since then 10 more mayors have signed a resolution stating their opposition.

The N.C. Division of Coastal Management is accepting public comment on a request for review of a federal consistency submission from a fifth company proposing seismic testing in the Atlantic Ocean related to oil and gas resource development off the North Carolina coast.